Losers
by autumn.insanity
Summary: They call it the hatching time. Everyone is trying their hardest to get a bite at the losers who hatched too late to get away with the big group. (Basically, a PruCan highschool au. Lots of characters involved. Probably mentions of other pairings. Rated T for lots and lots of swearing and some bullying. Multichapter. On hiatus until finals are over!)
1. Chapter 1

Title: Losers

Summary: They call it the hatching time. Everyone is trying their hardest to get a bite at the losers who hatched too late to get away with the big group.

Rated: T, for (a whole lot of) swearing and a bit of bullying.

* * *

Summer made everyone feel a certain kind of sluggishness. It was a hot, sticky blanket on their back, making their minds hazy and their minds weary. It was not a good time to be in school. Even the nice kids, the kids who sat with lonely people and helped the kids who dropped their bags pick things up, were being worn down by the thick, humid air. You could practically taste it, both the heat and the hatred burning in everyones soul. The breeze wasn't common, but when it was it brought life back into the peoples eyes for a moment. It seemed that the A.C kicking on was another thing that started a spark.

With kids seeming so hostile, it would be a bad idea for any poor transfer student to start the school year. But, it seemed that it was also prime time for parents to want to move their whiny brats. The kids at this particular high school called it hatching time. The first wave of new kids ended up being alright, but the oddballs that rolled in after got ripped apart. They got home with bite marks that weren't visible to anyone else.

So, of course, a kid with social anxiety would end up starting school during this time. It was unfortunate. He had no idea about what would happen to him. But he was out of breath nonetheless. He was having an anxiety attack, and he also had to run to catch the bus. _Humidity makes running suck even more_, he thought to himself as he just barely made his way onto the bus. He nestled himself into an open seat. He left his backpack at his side for a while, making it occupy the space beside him, but eventually he had to pull it close to his chest. He needed something to cling onto. His hair stuck to his forehead as he sweat from both utter nervousness and the goddamned heat. His glasses were a bit foggy too, he realized. He took them off and then closed his eyes for a moment, breathing in for two, four, six, eight, ten seconds. He held his breath for five more seconds, then let it out for ten more seconds. He made his muscles relax as he wiped off his glasses, putting them back into place after.

He decided he needed a distraction. So he started to test himself to remember which classes he had today. English in room 206, then Math in room 115, then Art in room 317, and finally History in room 211. He had no idea what his teachers names were. He forgot.

After he got bored of repeating what he already very much knew, he just stared out of the window. That is, until he heard and felt someone plop down next to him. He jumped slightly, his heart dropping to his stomach as he thought _shit shit shit I knew they had assigned seats._ He just bit his lip for a moment before making himself relax. There had been no words said yet.

"Yo, kid. You must be new, or else you've been invisible all year." A voice said. _Fuck._

"A-Ah. Yeah, I'm n-new." He said, amazed at how much he didn't butcher the sentence.

"Hm. Well, since I don't sit with anyone and I don't use the window seat, I guess you can stay there. What's your name?" The voice asked.

"...Matthew." He mumbled.

"Dope. I'm Alfred. I'mma just warn you now, you joined school at a really bad time. I would suggest keeping quiet." Alfred warned.

"Thank you for your k-kindness." Matthew muttered dryly. "I-It won't be a problem for m-me."

"You got a stutter." Alfred pointed out as if it wasn't obvious.

"No shit." At least that came out right.

"Heh. You might just survive the hatch, kid." Alfred said before hollering to the next kid that came on, earning an aggravated shout from the bus driver.

Alfred ignored it, and the kid he shouted to ignored Alfred. Matthew wanted to laugh at that, but he was way too nervous. Alfred had made his throat dry up and instead of wanting just a glass of water he wanted the entire ocean so he could drown himself. Maybe he could find someone to cling to? But everyone hates clingers, so that would be a really bad idea... He was really out of luck.

Soon after, Matthew was left alone. Although, he couldn't sit in peace because as time ticked on, the bus grew more and more chaotic. There were kids, obviously Alfreds very loud friends, who crowded the seats around them and made Matthew feel very closed in. He wanted to open the window, but his bones felt too heavy for him to move them. And as time went on, he realized how much he wanted to punch every one of them. But, as mentioned before, his bones inside of his arms had managed to change into lead and now he couldn't use them. _Great_, he thought,_ I'm going to have to put up with this for three more years._

* * *

Woah that was kind of shitty and way too short. But beginnings are always tough. I probably won't add another part until next week-ish. It'll be much longer though. I didn't even break a thousand, damn.


	2. Chapter 2

Walking into school wasn't as terrifying as he thought it might be. His hands were shaking and he had to hold his breath, of course, but it still was a lot calmer than he thought it might be. No one pushed him on purpose, there was that one time where he accidentally stopped in the middle of the hall, but they both apologized. When he found his locker, it opened on his first try and he felt so proud of himself. He took in a deep breath as he put his things in his locker, making sure to grab his English binder and a pen before closing his locker.

And that is when things started to go wrong. The second he turned around he bumped into someone, and that said person dropped their books as a result.

"O-Oh my g-gosh, I a-am so sorry!" Matthew said and bent down to pick up their books for them.

"Nah, man. It's all cool. I'd help you, but… Well, you'll see when you stand up." They said.

"Huh?" Matthew asked as he stood up and handed them their books. Then he noticed their eyes. A milky-white color. "Oh wow. N-Now I feel even w-worse."

"It's okay. I just wanted to say that my locker is right next to yours and I think yours is blocking mine."

"Oh, s-sorry…" They smiled at Matthew as he moved to close his locker. "My name is Gilbert." The guy, Matthew figured now that he was a guy, said.

"Mine i-is Matthew." He said as he watched Gilbert put his backpack away and get out a binder, "D-Do you mind m-me a-as-asking how long you've g-gone here?"

"This is my first day. Well, not counting the week I've spent here after school, figuring out the hallways and which classrooms were which." Gilbert said.

"This is my first day, too. I guess t-this is around the time new k-kids stop showing u-up." Matthew was really happy to have gotten at least one good sentence out.

"Yeah, it seems like it. And it seems that we're both a little extra odd, huh?" Gilbert said, pausing to close his locker and turn towards Matthew, "Not in a bad way, of course."

"Of course n-not. I-I've heard about t-the h-h-hatch stuff too." Matthew shifted to hold onto his English binder with both hands. His pen was in one, which was starting to get a bit sweaty from all he was holding and the fact that he was talking.

"It's stupid, in all honesty. But, I guess it just means the poor kids who come in late get to be one of those cliche groups where everyone is completely different, but best friends."

"Haha. I-I'm kind of hoping f-for something good l-like that."

"You and me both, kid. Anyways, what's your first class?" Now, Gilbert shifts to lean against the lockers. They have about fifteen more minutes before they need to get to their first class.

"E-English in room 126."

"Too bad. At least my class is near yours. I've got Algebra 2 in room 129. It's only a couple classes away, if you want to walk with me to your next class or something. Mine would be… Uh… History in room 41."

"Mine too, a-actually. I-I kind of thought we'd have a-a few c-classes together, s-since we s-signed up at the same-ish t-time."

"Sweet, and I guess that would make quite a bit of sense. What do you got next?"

"Art, which I-I can a-assume you don't have." Gilbert laughed a little and noded, which made Matthew smile a little bit. This is going great. Really great.

"I don't. That's in the big room on the second floor, right? I think its room 137. I've got a music class then which shouldn't be too far from there since all the fine arts classes are kind of in a cluster."

"T-That makes sense. S-So for the most part, I-I c-could walk around w-with you. To, you know, avoid any e-extreme assholes."

"Right. I'll even let you be my guide. After music I have gym, which is going to fucking suck let me tell you that. Then lunch."

"Same with me."

"Sweet. Do you want to head up to my Algebra class? You can hang out there until the bell rings."

"T-That sounds good."

Matthew was just really relieved to had made a friend. And in all honesty, he was glad that Gilbert wasn't exactly normal and he came late, because that meant they could be alone and weird together. Maybe they'd become friends, but right now they both knew this was basically for strategic purposes. No one got attacked when they were alone, and if they did they had twice the chance to come out okay. This was what he needed, something to help him calm down from all of the chaos going on internally. Then maybe he could function at a normal rate and maybe stutter only twice a sentence.

He was very lucky. He helped Gilbert get up the stairs, which basically just meant letting him hold onto his arm and going up the stairs slowly. Because stairs fucking suck for blind people, at least, that's what Gil said. They got to his class and Matthew tried to relax some. They talked for a while, Matthew nearly murdering every sentence and Gilbert seeming to be okay with it.

Then the bell finally rang, which meant Matthew had to get to his class. It took less than a minute, but he still felt like he was late. The teacher was nice enough, but he was very strict. He seemed to really like what he was teaching, and that made Matthew happy, but he was still nervous. The class went by quickly, he spent ten minutes talking about what he wanted the kids (well, the majority of the kids already knew this, it was for Matthew mostly) to have and what to expect, then after that he went into the lecture and honestly he zoned out for most of it. There was that really loud kid up from his bus in the back, and by the end of class his new seat was right up front, next to some british kid and this other really quiet dude. It had been like this all year from what he heard.

The bell rang sooner than he expected. He got his stuff together and headed to where Gil's class was. He helped him downstairs, and then they got their history stuff from their respective lockers. History was another class where it was mostly lectures and note-taking, but when class was half over, the teacher let them talk with their seat partner because they'd be sitting next to them for the next half of the year. It just worked better to have them get along. No one really minded, most of them were already friends. Matthew decided to call Gilbert that, since that was the way he was acting.

The whole day by went by in a blur. For most of it, Matthew was happily nervous. Gym sucked, just like Gilbert said it would. Art was really fun, he could listen to his own music and paint whatever he wanted to. Lunch wasn't as terrible as he thought it would be, and their table actually filled up pretty quickly. It was mostly just the people who came in late like them. It was a nice lunch because of that, but the food was kind of terrible.

He didn't see anyone he knew for the rest of the day, up until the bell rang for the end of the day. He couldn't talk with Gil for long, but at least they got to say bye. After that, Matthew ran to catch his bus. He rested then. After a day like that, he was exhausted. It was really good, but still. He slept for most of the ride home, and when his stop came up he happily ran inside. His mother wasn't home, so that meant he could take a nap. He only half-slept though, he was still buzzing inside from how exciting today was. He ended up getting up and doing his homework before going to get something to snack on, and then his mother walked through the door. They smiled at each other. His mom just asked if he had a good day and he nodded and that was it. She went to her room after that, and he soon disappeared into his.

Not too far from Matthew's house was Gilbert's. He lived a few streets down, they'd be on the same bus if his grandparents didn't drive him. Buses weren't really his thing. He wasn't very talkative on the way home, his grandmother just took it as him being tired or maybe he had a bad day. Truth was that he was really happy, but he's playing it cool because he's cool. His grandmother makes him sit at the table when they get home, but he didn't really complain. He did kind of want to talk about it. He really wasn't expecting to make friends, he never had any at his last schools. He talked about his day for a whole thirty minutes and his grandparents happily listened, occasionally giving him feedback. They were happy he made a friend, too. Eventually he ran out of things to tell them about and he got to go up to his room. He just turned on his TV so he could listen to a movie. He fell asleep until dinner time, and then it was just a quiet meal with his brother and grandparents. They watched a movie after dinner and Ludwig talked a bit about his day, but it wasn't anything too exciting from what he insisted. No one minded. It was really comfortable. But Gilbert was tired, and so was everyone, so soon they all headed to bed.

* * *

That's it, for now! I am so sorry that this is so late. I had a lot of family troubles and then I got to got to Miami for a little break. I should be better now that things are at least a little normal, but no promises. I really don't know when the next chapter will be up, but hopefully it won't be so long of a wait! I wish it wasn't so boring, this was an important filler chapter just so they could become friends and stuff. Next chapter will be a bit more in detail about things. Also, be warned, this has no editing and I am really tired. So if you find a typo, feel free to **_politely_ **point it out.


	3. Chapter 3

Matthew was having an anxiety attack. On a scale of one to five, the scale his therapist helped him come up with to describe how fucking terrible he felt, it was definitely a four point eight. He felt like a earthquake inside and it was all because some kid on the bus decided to shout obscenities at him and then shove him once they got off the bus. He was fine at first, he managed to smile and talk to Gilbert for a bit and he made it to second period even though he had been thinking about the three hundred ways he could've said something to make it better. He was halfway through History when he had to ask to go to the library and after that he was done. Someone had the nerve to ask him if he was okay. His voice choked him and he just rushed to leave after that.

The walk was long, he had to ask where the library was and if that wasn't bad enough, it was all the way down the hall. It was nice, and if it were any other situation he'd be very happy with how many nice books it had and he'd probably be buried in a pile of books. But, right now, he was curled up, knees to his chest, arms around his legs, head hidden in them. He wasn't crying, or maybe he was, but he was shaking and it felt like it hurt to breathe and he wanted to just go home and go to bed. He had to pull himself together, he told himself. He has to grow up and be the junior he is. But he just can't.

He recites the breathing practice his therapist showed him when he was still seeing them, and slowly, after the bell ringing to tell everyone class was over, he calmed down. He wasn't sure how calm he was, though. He didn't move, because if you try to walk while an earthquake is going on you just fall back down. He was sure Gil was worried about him, but he couldn't bring himself to move.

Instead he let himself think about how amazing the last two weeks had been. That's right, it really had been two weeks since he started school here and it really had been two weeks without his anxiety nearly crippling him. He had become friends with Gilbert, and no, not friends that are friends because they don't have anyone else to be around. They were actual friends who would hang out outside of school or skip class together. They got along really well, surprisingly. Gilbert was loud, obnoxious, sarcastic, and honestly really narcissistic at times. Matthew was quiet, shy, and he didn't think all too highly of himself. But he was really sarcastic, and with Gilbert he was a bit louder than he would be in any other situation.

Thinking about good things made him feel better. It made him feel okay enough to stand up, and then it gave him the strength to run to class because the bell would ring in two minutes.

The art teaching was very understanding, though. Matthew didn't even get yelled at. He just got to take his seat and this time he was allowed to paint whatever he wanted to instead of the stupid project they were working on. He took a deep breath once he got out his canvas, closing his eyes for a few moments. His hands were still shaking, and he was pretty sure that he couldn't paint just yet. Earthquakes usually cause damage even after their done.

Then someone tapped his shoulder.

"Excuse me, but do you mind passing the yellow paint?" A girl asked him.

"A-Ah, yeah. H-Here you g-go." Matthew said and passed the paint bottle.

"Your stutter is pretty bad." The girl said. Matthew could tell they had an accent, but he couldn't quite tell what kind. It was very faint.

"Don't be mean to him. He probably is very aware of that." Another girl scolded, pouting slightly at the first girl.

He hadn't noticed the group of kids he was sitting with. Two girls and a guy. The girl who had been scolding the first girl was obviously Italian. She seemed like a sweetheart who could beat the crap out of you if she needed to. The first girl seemed to be kind of nice as well, but Matthew really didn't know much about her. She liked to paint more than do anything else. The other guy was usually quiet. All Matthew knew was that he liked classical music (he had noticed one day that the only music on the guy's Ipod was classical), and he really liked art but he wasn't super good at painting. And he seemed like he was kind of a dick.

"Sorry, sweetie. Franny can be a bit mean sometimes." The Italian girl said.

"I-It's okay." Matthew said.

"I'm Isabelle. Who're you?" She asked.

"Matthew." He replied quietly.

"I'm Francine." The other girl announces.

"Roddy." Isabelle pokes the other guy who isn't even listening to them.

"What." The guy deadpans, earning a glare from Isabelle.

"Say hi to Mattie."

"Hi."

Francine chuckles at how unsocial the guy is, Isabelle tells Matthew that he's Roderich and in most other situations he's really nice, but he uses art class as an excuse to zone out to Beethoven. Matthew can forgive him. He'd much rather be listening to music, but Isabelle seems nice enough, and they're all done with the projects they have to do, anyways. They start to talk, with Francine and Isabelle doing quite a bit of the talking, Matthew most of the listening, and Roderich doing all of the not caring.

Matthew ended up having a really good time in art class. He managed to completely forget about his anxiety. Francine was really cool, and actually super nice to him (and she spoke French, too. They started talking in French together and pissed Isabelle off.) Isabelle was a total sweetheart, but she also didn't take much shit. She has quite the bite and not a whole lot of bark, he found out. Roderich was kind of nice, but mostly sarcastic and tired. So, in short, they got along pretty well. He liked them all.

When he met up with Gilbert to head to gym, he knew it would be a slight shitstorm. Turns out, though, that Gilbert was only kind of worried.

"I figured you had a good reason to leave class, and that if you ran into anyone unpleasant you could handle it. You seem to do pretty good on your own, when you have to." He explained as he put his books into his locker.

"J-Just a minorly major panic attack. I'm okay now, I had a-a really good time in art which k-kind of balanced it out." Matthew explained as well.

"What about?" Gilbert asked.

They were really honest with each other. Just because they had become friends not long ago didn't stop that at all. Gilbert wasn't a judgemental person at all, and while Matthew was sarcastic he would never judge someone if they told him something serious. They both also thought that it didn't matter how long you knew somebody, if you wanted to be open with them, you could do that. So they got to know each other really quickly, and now they were open about literally everything.

"Just a c-comment someone had made. I thought t-too much about it, really, I did it to myself."

"No way. There has to be fuel to start a fire; that dummkopf didn't need to made a comment."

Gilbert was also protective. He wasn't protective of everyone, just his grandparents, his little brother, and Matthew. Matthew didn't mind it one bit, he actually found it a bit endearing in a completely sarcastic way.

"I'm okay now, a-anyways." Matthew interrupted him from having a fit.

"Hmph. Fine. What happened that was so good in art class?"

"I made friends, o-or at least that what I think they'd call me. Isabelle and Francine, d-do you know them by a-any chance?"

"I know Francine, I think. She speaks French fluently and does it often?"

"Yeah, thats the one."

"She's in the afterschool program, she was one of the people showing me around school. She's pretty awesome."

"She pointed out m-my stutter, but s-she did apologize for it l-later."

"Speaking of which, I know you don't like talking about it, but I wanted to let you know that it's getting better."

"T-Thank you. I've learned that short words a-are the way to go."

"So how terrifying would it be to pronounce hippopotomonstrosesquippedaliophobia?"

"Y-You could barely pronounce it. I would d-die."

"Do you have that, by the way?"

"Totally. I'm about to run away screaming."

"My bad."

"Salop."

"Okay, I know that you just swore at me but I have no idea what that means."

"And you'll n-never know."

"Verpiss dich."

And with that, they headed to gym class. It was a long class, too. Mainly because they had to run for half of it and it wasn't like the track was easy to get around. Gilbert nearly fell twice each day, and today the gym teacher finally got smart enough to consider that he might not be fit for running. So, both him and Matthew ended up being allowed to go up to the weight room and work out. (Although Gilbert is fit as fuck, and Matthew was kind of embarrassed to not be able to lift as much. Gilbert just laughed.) After gym class, lunch comes around. And after they both pay for their lunch and head to the nearest empty table, Matthew hears an excited shout.

"Mattie! Come sit over here!" Says a very cheery voice, and Matthew is quick to realize that it's Isabelle talking.

Gilbert smiled at that, especially when Matthew asked if he wanted to go sit with them.

"Of course. I think we might have found our weird group of friends, Mattie."

"I-I think so too."

Once they sit down the conversation never ends. Isabelle finds Gilbert really cool, and Francine and basically everyone tease each other. There is a whole lot of swearing in quite a few languages, they end up sharing food because Isabelle and Francine make their own lunch and they make it way too big. They meet a girl named Sakura who is from Japan, and unlike mostly everyone, she grew up there and has only recently moved. She's super nice, and she calls everyone by their last name. She's quiet, and sometimes she stutters too, so Matthew and her get along quite well. There's also Antonio and Lovino, Lovino is Isabelle's brother, and Antonio has just been their friend for years.

Gilbert never stops smiling. Not once does anyone ask him about being blind, and actually, they treat him more normal than anyone has in years. This day would for sure be going in the books, because so far he'd never had a better one. He was so happy that his year was turning out this good. He was a little worried, usually when things got to be like this they ended up really badly, but he managed to shrug it off. This would be a good year. He'd make sure of it.

That night, dinner felt really shitty. Matthew had to make his own, but he'd been doing it since he was twelve so he was kind of just used to it. It was good, of course, but he felt kind of lonely for some reason. It wasn't particularly loneliness, it was more of an empty feeling. Like there was really something missing now. It started when his mother didn't even bother saying anything to him when he passed by her to get to his room, and it bothered him even now as he was trying to get to sleep. He kind of wished he could text Gilbert, but then he ended up feeling really bad about it.

He started to think then. He did know Gilbert really well, more than some of his previous best friends knew, or so he told him. He liked to have a friend like him, it's like he grew up with him without actually growing up with him. They had a plan to hang out this weekend at the local park, they could both use a little time to explore the town and why not hang out while they do it.

Things were going well, he decided. Even if it didn't work out with the other friends he made, if he could still be friends with Gilbert, he'd be pretty happy.

* * *

Translations:

Salop(French): Bitch (The masculine form.)

Verpiss Dich(German): Fuck off.

The boys have lovely mouths, don't they? And I know this chapter kind of started out really wow-like, but I started it when I was having a panic attack and it kind of helped a lot, actually. To even out the not-goodness of the start, I gave you some friendly fluff at the end. All these characters will have a lot of importance later, but you could probably guess that. There are still more characters that are going to be in this, but I don't think they're anyone that has too big of an influence on anyone.

Also, I'll let you decide whether you think things will keep going just as good as they are now, or if things will eventually get bad. I can't promise anything. Next chapter will be the weekend for them, so expect to actually get to know more about their lives and stuff then. And it'll probably be more from Gilbert's point of view because I didn't intend for it to be so focused on Mattie ever. I'm also 300% sure this is getting a bit less well written each time because I have no editor (sobs) and I also write these late at night when I'm tired. Again, please feel free to politely point out spelling mistakes.


	4. Chapter 4

Mornings are tough for Gilbert. It's weird being blind and waking up, because not only are you groggy, but things are still dark and it's so tempting to just slip back into the warmth of sleep. Gilbert knows he has to get up, though. Last time he didn't, his grandma sent his brother up with a glass of ice cold water, and, well, it wasn't pleasant, to put it simply. Even though it is Saturday and he should be sleeping in, he has to get ready to meet Matthew at the park. They were going to be walking around town together today, and he was actually kind of excited. His grandparents loved him, but they still worked full time jobs and couldn't always take him out to places. And his brother was either at practice or doing homework. So, he was stuck at home most of the time. It didn't bother him until Matthew suggested they hang out outside of school and neither of them could figure out a good place to go. They agreed to go to the most popular coffee shop for breakfast, then they would start their day of wandering around.

Gilbert got on what he thought were pretty normal clothes. He had to feel the fabric, since the difference between a regular cotton t-shirt and a really fancy dress shirt was actually quite hard to figure out. He had been getting better at it. After getting all his clothes on, he made his way to the kitchen. He was still getting used to this house, so he had to hold onto the walls. His fingerprints were smudged on the walls as proof. He told his Grandma he would be out via shouting. After that, he walked outside and leaned against his mailbox. Matthew had told him he would walk to his house and to just be waiting outside. They hadn't realized that they lived so close to each other until now. Gilbert figured Matthew didn't want to bother his mother either.

Matthew was there not too long after he rested himself against his mailbox. Gilbert could tell he was smiling when they said hello.

"H-Hey, Gil. Ready to head i-into town?" Matthew said.

"Yeah. I mean, I like the mailbox and all, but it wouldn't be very comfortable to stay here." Gilbert said with a smirk.

"Quiet or else I'll m-make you stay here." Matthew ordered.

"I'd follow you and you know it."

"I'd go into t-the woods."

"Jerk."

They both gave a laugh and started to walk after that. Matthew lead the way, of course, and they somehow made it into town with no close calls. Gilbert had a tendency to think that he could cross the road whenever, but since it kind of made him feel bad to hear Matthew panic, he didn't do it around him. Often. They walked into the coffee shop, the smell of coffee very strong for obvious reasons. Gilbert could also faintly smell baking bread and something sweet. He assumed it was sugar, frosting, or something along those lines. It didn't sound very busy, all he could hear was one conversation that could've been coming from behind the counter, or at the counter, coffee being brewed, the faint clinking of silverware on plates (this place did offer breakfast, after all), and the quiet hum of someone's laptop.

"This place looks really nice, b-by the way. There a-are tables on one side, then on the o-other there are b-booths and high up tables. Then when you walk in t-there's this d-dark brown c-c-carpet that leads up to the cash register. It's n-nice." Matthew said. He's been getting better at giving Gilbert visuals lately, and Gilbert really likes that.

"Sounds awesome. It seems really calming here from what I can tell."

"Yeah. I-I can see why it's so popular."

Gilbert was about to reply when a cheery sounding female voice spoke up.

"How can I help you today… Wait, Mattie?" Gilbert quickly realized that the female's voice was Isabelle's.

"Oh! Isabelle, I-I didn't know you w-worked here." Matthew replied.

"Of course I do! My grandpa owns this place, and all of it's branches! It started out in Italy, you know, and then he opened a shop here and boom! Suddenly everyone wanted some." Isabelle talked quick like she always does, and Gilbert could tell that she's using hand gestures.

"R-Really? That's really cool." Matthew said.

"Anyways, what can I get you two?" Isabelle changed the subject, sounding like she just remembered she had a job to do.

Matthew sounds like he can't really keep up with Isabelle sometimes. She moves a bit faster than the rest of the world, and for people like Matthew that can be troubling to handle. Gilbert wanted to laugh at that, almost. Matthew managed to order, and then Gilbert did and they sat down.

"These chairs are comfortable as hell." Gilbert pointed out.

"Yeah. They're k-kinda cold though. Pretty c-common restaurant chairs and table." Matthew said, resting his chin on his hand.

"Mm… I like it here." Gilbert said.

"Me t-too." Matthew said.

"It seems like a place you would hang out at often."

"I-I can see that. Especially i-if this place isn't b-busy too often."

"Yeah. It seems like the place that can have a hundred people but still not seem busy."

"E-Exactly. I t-think it would be a nice place t-to come to when you w-want to calm down, or for a d-date or during finals or something."

"It feels like a real coffee shop."

Breakfast went on like this for about an hour. They talked while they ate, and slowly their coffee cups emptied. They didn't have enough money for refills, so they just left after that, thanking Isabelle. After that, they headed into the town. It was actually quite nice. There was a small bakery in town and that made an entire street smell like baking bread. The temperature was warm, but the wind was blowing at just the right speed to keep it comfortable. There wasn't too many people out considering that it was a Saturday. Overall, it seemed like the universe was working with them to make today a really good day.

They walked into a couple stores, the first one being the previously mentioned bakery. They agreed to one day come back and buy something from there before heading back into the not-so-busy street. The second store was a thrift store, and they went in to go look at what kinds of little ceramics they sold and whatnot. It was kind of them just poking fun of the things that were dorkier than them, and eventually they got bored and left. After that, they went into a few other kinds of stores, most of the time just fooling around and making stupid jokes. So, in other words, being stereotypical teenagers. The type of teenagers you should be able to be sometimes.

After they finished up with that, they found themselves walking to the park. It was a nice enough day out, and even though Gilbert had to stay in the shade, they both agreed it would be nice. After a little while of walking through the warm town, Gilbert knew they were there. It smelled like freshly cut grass and summer, though by now it was later in fall.. There was the sound of a playground nearby, with plenty of kids keeping it occupied. The temperature had gone up and the wind slowed, but it wasn't a problem a bottle of water couldn't solve. There was the occasional sound of shoes scuffing past them, which meant that it was a somewhat popular park. He liked that. He waited for Matthew to tug his sleeve, that meant he found a good place to sit.

They had learned to talk without talking, mostly because in really loud situations, Matthew was too quiet to be heard. But also because it just felt right to not talk sometimes, and so they figured out other ways to tell each other things.

Gilbert followed the sound of footsteps when he felt his shirt being tugged at, this time it was tugged down by his waist, probably just because he wasn't wearing a jacket. Soon, he could tell that they were in the shade. It was warm enough out that you could feel the difference in temperature from in the sun to in the shade. It was quite refreshing, although Gilbert was kind of wishing they had enough money for some ice cream.

"It's really nice out." Matthew said after a while of silence.

Gilbert is surprised for two reasons. A. It had been so quiet he had started to forget he was around people and B. Matthew didn't stutter at all.

"It is… Even if I can't see it, I can feel it and hear it." Gilbert replied.

"Y-Yeah… Does your family take you out when t-they can?" Matthew sounded like he was trying to not stutter. For some reason, that made Gilbert really happy, but also kind of sad.

"They do. But they hardly can do it anymore. Too much work and school and practice…" Gilbert listed, leaning back with a small sigh.

"Mm… Well, at least you have m-me then? I might not be a-able to go out every day, but I can t-t-take you out occasionally." Matthew said.

Gilbert rested a hand on Matthew's shoulder for a second, their silent way of trying to tell the other to calm down.

"Yeah, you're really good to have around. Maybe I could pay you to be my transporter."

"Ha. Fifty bucks a w-week sounds good to m-me."

"I was thinking more that I could pay you in my friendship."

"Fuck no."

"I tried."

Matthew laughed and after a few moments Gilbert did, too. They ended up staying out at the park for about an hour, and when it started to finally cool off again they headed home. Matthew walked Gilbert home, of course. By this time, Gilbert's grandparents were home and they wanted to drive Matthew home and have him stay for lunch and dinner and all sorts of things, but he politely declined. They understood and sent him on his way with a short hug from them both. Matthew got home before sunset, and for the first time since his parents got divorced, he had a really good night.

Gilbert, of course, had an amazing night. He explained all he could to his grandma, but there was just too much to explain eventually so he kind of gave up and settled on calling it an amazing day that he won't forget. And even if he seemed like a very cheery guy, he didn't have many good memories. He was just happy to finally be making them now.

* * *

Woo! Another chapter down. It was kind of a lighter one that was meant to just be a bonding day between the two. It is kind of a big deal, though, because if any of you are introverted or just kinda shy or whatever, you might know that it's a little tough to agree to plans on the weekends. People are tiring for Matthew, but you can take his willingness to be out with Gilbert any way you like. (Let's be real, though, it's a prucan fic and I'm pretty sure most of you are taking it a romantic way.) Also some more hints at some not so pleasant back stories for Gilbert, and by now you should've figured the same for Matthew. Find out more about it next time! Well, maybe not next time, but eventually!


End file.
